The Rabbit Hole
by kalajmic
Summary: After Maeve's death, Spencer Reid finds it harder and harder to cope with everyday life, until he walks into The Rabbit Hole, a warm book store with a lively staff and a woman behind the counter that wants to show him how wounds can heal. (Spencer Reid x OFC, Ginger Shelly)
1. Who In The World Am I? (edited)

Author Lewis Carroll said " _Who in the world am I? Ah, that's the great puzzle."_

* * *

It was raining in Virginia and Spencer Reid had the day off.

It was rare for an F.B.I. agent to have a break from their normally hectic lives, so Spencer took full advantage of it. On that particular day, he decided to walk to a new book shop called _The_ _Rabbit_ _Hole_ that had opened three months ago and was approximately five minutes away from his house. He read online that they carried a wide variety of books; they had books dating back to the _17th_ century. And they had an in-store café that served up teas and coffees along with baked goods.

After a short and calming walk there, Spencer opened the door, shook out his umbrella and was welcomed by a gush of hot air, Chopin's Nocturne Op. 9 No.2, and a little white cat. The song was beautiful enough to make the angels above cry, but the smells of coffee and old books and the rain and thunder overhead made it that much sweeter to hear. Near him sat a beautiful young girl holding a worn out looking copy of _The_ _Canterbury_ _Tales_ , looking dreamily off into space, a cup of hot tea resting beside her. Spencer noticed that her beautiful, chestnut colored curly hair was messily pulled up onto her head along with her glasses.

Spencer couldn't help but gaze in awe at her and appreciate how her light, lovely brown skin glowed under the soft light of the store. To him, she looked like a dream. Though he wanted to know her, he felt as if he stood no chance, so he decided to walk away and into the café to grab a cup of coffee. Instead of a regular to-go cup, they served their beverage in large mugs you need to hold with both hands. Each mug had a hand painted literary quote written in it, so you'd have to finish your drink to find out which quote you got. Carrying his drink, Reid disappeared into a random section of bookshelves, trying to push the woman out of his mind, and began to scan titles and grabbing ones that appealed to him the most along the way.

Reid ended up with a reasonable amount of books and ended up in an isolated corner of the shop which was coincidentally in the line of sight to the woman at the cash register. Setting his coffee down, Reid watched the woman interact with a customer, laughing at something they said, brushing a strand of loose curls behind her ear. Sighing at his actions, he opened the first book on his lap, _One Hundred Years of Solitude_ , and tried to read the words printed on the paper. His mind wouldn't let him process the words but instead, filled his brain up with memories of Maeve and how rationally he knew she'd want him to move on and try to be happy but his mind plagued him with thoughts of being an unlucky man when it came to love; the one woman he truly loved was dead.

He had to remind himself that just because she worked in a book store, that didn't mean she would have appreciated his knowledge of the world around them nor listened to his endless ramblings of topics no one else cared about.

* * *

Reid stayed in that corner for two hours, listening to the song change to Beethoven's 14th Sonata. He let his mind take over, hands glued to the books in his lap, occasionally leaving to grab the coffee mug to fuel his thin body.

Eventually the song came to an end, as did his coffee. _"Kiss me and see how important I am." - Sylvia Plath_ was written in the bottom of his cup in tiny gold letters. Shaking his head, Reid gathered his belongings and made his way back tot he café to return his cup. The young man who served his coffee and had green hair gave him a smile and told him to have a nice day. Juggling his books, he fished his wallet out of his pocket as the person in front of him paid for their items.

"I can help who's next." Her voice was one you'd find in your sheets in the middle of the night, telling you she loved you or whispering commands as you made love. The classic 'bedroom voice' as Derek would have called Reid approached the counter and set his books atop of it. His eyes were glued to her hands, watching her gently place his books in a bag and ring up prices. "You're Dr. Spencer Reid. I went to a seminar about micro-expressions in Boston last year. You were amazing." Snapping his head up, he was amazed. He never met a woman who was interested in what he had to say. Even the slightest.

Realizing he was gawking, Reid cleared his throat, "Y-yes. Um, I am um I-I am Dr. Reid. The seminar, you really went to that?" She nodded, giving him a small smile, "Did you go to a school in Boston at the time or where you just there to see seminars?"

"Both actually." She found herself laughing at his surprised expression. "I went to Boston University for a bit before I transferred over to Sarah Lawrence. Oh, I'm Ginger, by the way."

* * *

 _ **Author's Note: I decided to start a new tory due to the amount of messages I got from one of my old stories, which were not all good. Enjoy this one though. Thank you.**_

 _ **-xoxo Maev**_

 _ **W.C.: 920**_


	2. Love Is Like a Virus

_"Love is like a virus. It can happen to anybody at any time." Maya Angelou_

* * *

 _"I'm Ginger..."_

 _After paying for his books, Ginger wrote down her phone number and name on a black piece of tiny card-stock, kissing the back of it. "Call me sometime. I'll take you to the best Mediterranean food you'll ever have." she said, giving him a warm smile._

 _"Like a-a d-dat-te?"_

 _"Not like a date. I am asking you out on a date, Doctor." Spencer didn't know where his voice went, but he nodded, mumbling things under his breath. He felt her eyes on his body as he stumbled out of the store, seeing the staff working the coffee bar giggling at each other after seeing the interaction between Spencer and Ginger._

* * *

Two days later, Spencer finally mustered up the guts to call Ginger. They ended up talking on the phone for an hour and a half, deciding that they would have the dinner date that following Saturday evening.

The whole week, Spencer was on edge, mentally trying to prepare himself to have dinner with a beautiful woman that wasn't one of his co-workers, for the first time, possibly ever.

"So, Pretty Boy, got big plans for this weekend?" Morgan playfully asked Reid Friday evening as everyone packed up to go home. The only reason Morgan bothered to ask, was because Tuesday morning when Reid came in, he was digging through his bag when Ginger's phone number fell out, lipstick side up. Morgan couldn't resist the urge to wolf whistle at him, seeing the outline of full, kissable lips in red.

Hurriedly gathering his belongings, Reid tried to make up lies, "No, nothing really. P-probably watching re-runs o-of Dr. Who a-and Star Trek. You know, the usual." Spencer tried to laugh it off, following everyone to the elevators so he could rush home.

"Well, if those get boring, we'll be down at O'Mally's bar if you want to stop by..." Rossi offered nicely. he hated seeing the kid so alone all the time. Since Maeve died, he wasn't the same but then again, everyone knew of his date on the upcoming Saturday. The team didn't want to see him suffer any longer; it nearly killed them to see how torn up he was about Maeve.

"Thanks Rossi." With that Spencer hurriedly got in the elevator and left. Once at home, Spencer began to freak out again, wondering if the outfit he had in mind was too dorky or if Ginger would realize that she was a goddess and he was a nerd and he would be stood up. As he pondered that, he began to dress himself in an off grey button down dress shirt with a darker grey tie, a light cardigan over that topped with a deep grey suit jacket. His dress trousers were the same color as the jacket, his slightly over-sized watch tucked under the jacket but over the cardigan. He wore miss matching socks and converse. No matter how much he fussed with his hair, it flopped into his face and was sticking out in odd directions. _(an outfit from season 10)_ Sighing, he grabbed his keys and left, going to Ginger's place to pick her up. He hoped that Ginger wasn't having second thoughts about their date.

Across town, Ginger stood in her apartment flinging dresses and skirts around her room, many landing on her dog. She felt nerves run through her veins, making her hands and legs shake. She never thought in a million years she'd be going on a date with Dr. Spencer Reid; she's read all that he had to offer to the world, she attended many lectures he was speaking at. Needless to say, Ginger was a fan; she was amazed by hid mind and wanted to pick at it but at the same time she was incredibly intimidated by him. Half of her nerves came from being scared he'd be bored by talking to her; she was normal, her brain was nothing compared to his, and she made a living off of selling books, not catching serial killers.

Tying not to think about it too much, she tried to decide on an outfit. Finally, she came across a little nude body-con dress that she paired with leather suede heels, small diamond earrings, a little silver ring and a small purse the color of her dress. The dress itself had small spaghetti straps and fell to her knees. Despite the length it was ver, very sexy; the whole outline of her body was on display, from her full breasts to her wide hips. Ginger was impressed by how god she personally thought her butt looked, too.

Instead of leaving her wild and unruly hair down like normal, she pinned it up with a few dozen bobbi pins and a black, decorative hair comb, laving her smooth back on display. makeup for Ginger was minimal: simple thin winged eyeliner and dark red lips. She felt that if her outfit was one tone, she should amp it up with some lipstick. Seconds later, she heard her doorbell ring making her scramble to find everything she needed and stuff them into her purse. Kissing her dog, Chai, on the head good-bye and ran out the door.

At the bottom of the steps of her apartment complex was Spencer waiting for her. Walking closer to him, Ginger found Spencer even more handsome than she remembered. Spencer was glad to have an eidetic memory in that moment; he never wanted to let go of the image of Ginger in her little tight dress, her perfect white teeth smiling through her dark lipstick. He wondered how it would feel to kiss her or touch her tiny waist. Spencer thought about if her skin was softer than it looked.

"Hi." Now she was in front of him, smiling up at Spencer.

"U-um," he cleared his throat. "you look-k, um, a-amazing." Clearing his throat again, Spencer rubbed the back of his neck, trying not to stare directly at her breasts. "W-we should, uh, get going..." Offering his arm to her, Ginger and Spencer walked a sort distance to his little blue car.

"Wow, a Volvo Amazon P130. My father worked on a P130, a white one. The Amazon was originally manufactured at Volvo's Lundby plant in Gothenburg and subsequently at the company's Torslandaverken, which began operating in 1964. By the end of production, 234,209 four-door models, 359,917 two-door models and 73,196 station wagons had been produced, 60% of them for export — for a total of 667,323 vehicles." Ginger let all of her Amazon knowledge spill out like word vomit, all while she touched the interior of Spencer's car. "Did you know that the Volvo amazons were labeled with an alphanumeric code to identify things such as style, doors, engine, transmission, steering wheel position, and model year?"

Amazed by her words, Spencer took a second, eyes still on the road, "H-how do you k-know all of t-that?"

Looking over at him, Ginger enjoyed watching lights flickering against his pale face as they drove, "My father worked on cars for fun an used to try and punish me when I did something wrong by making me read books about cars. Eventually he caught on that no book would bore me so he insisted on me helping fix up old cars."

"May I ask, what did your parents do for a living? Was your father a mechanic or car salesmen? I'm sorry that was stupid-you said it was a hobby, I'm sorry."

"It's okay Spencer," she said, laughing lightly, "My father, Chrispin, is an entomologist, actually and my mother, Cosima, is an artist. She sculpts."

"Wait - those are your parents?"

Ginger's eyes widened, "Yes. Do you know them?"

Nodding, Spencer saw the lights of the restaurant ahead, "Yes. I read you father's books and one of my co-workers, JJ, likes and collects butterflies so once Christmas I bought her your father's book _Lycaenidae_ and a shadow-box of a mounted female or _Ornithoptera goliath_ which i-"

"Goliath Birdwing butterfly." Ginger finished his sentence making Spencer blush. Realizing that they were sitting in the parking lot, Spencer rushed out of the car and fumbled with the passenger side door, opening it and helping Ginger out of the car. Smiling up at him, Ginger took his arm in hers and walked with him to the front doors. The restaurant itself was exquisite. They had decided on a very open and large Chinese restaurant, warm lighting and plush red velvet seats. Ginger's favorite part was the amount of plants everywhere. She instantly recognized many of them as plants only found in Asia, some exclusively in China. Of course she only knew what they were from the books she'd read over the years.

"Wow, Spencer, this place is amazing." They were placed in the center of the room in a well lit area. From where he sat and the way the light hit Ginger's face, Spencer found her completely mesmerizing. On their way to the table, Spencer did catch quite a few men watching Ginger's hips sway back and forth, as was their waiter.

"I-I'm glad you think so." Spencer cursed himself for being so nervous, but he couldn't help it. he found himself glancing from his menu up to look at her face, collarbones, the soft skin on her chest that would normally lead down between the valley of her breasts, but that was covered up, which Spencer was grateful for. If it was not covered, he probably just stare at her the whole night, not bothering to say anything remotely intelligent.

"I, ahem, think I-I'll get the Char Siu..what about you?"

Looking up with her large doe eyes, Ginger smiled slightly, " I think I'll go with the Buddha's Delight."

"Do you not eat meat?" Spencer questioned, knowing that the dish she wanted was strictly vegetarian.

"Yes, I am. I haven't eaten meat, ever and I _love_ daylily."

Spencer was surprised. He didn't think he's ever met a vegetarian before, all of his co-workers definitely ate meat. "I did not know that about you..."

Spencer was suppressed when Ginger laughed, like small chimes, and said "Well, _Doctor_ , there is a lot you don't know about me."


	3. Finally Meet Somewhere

_"The minute I heard my first love story,_  
 _I started looking for you, not knowing_  
 _how blind that was._  
 _Lovers don't finally meet somewhere._  
 _They're in each other all along."_  
 _― Rumi,_ "The Illuminated Rumi"

* * *

Spencer was always capable of counting the days, but the last three weeks flew by like nothing. He remembered cases and names of the victims and unsubs, but his mind was in a fog and in the center of that fog was Ginger. After their date, Ginger suggested that they went for a walk in a park where they found a small bench surrounded by flowers. They stayed there for an hour or two, until the moon came peaking out from behind the clouds. To Reid, Ginger looked stunning in the moon light. Her warm brown skin glowed and hair lit up like a halo. But all good things had to come to an end.

The team had just arrived home after a particularly long case, a week and a half, but despite the horrific things Spencer had seen and how exhausted he was, he wanted to stop into the shop to see Ginger, even if it was for a second. Getting into his car, his mind raced with thoughts of Ginger; the way her lips curled up slowly when she smiled, her long, curly hair that had a mind of it's own, her delicate hands.

Arriving at the Rabbit Hole, Spencer got out of his car, consciously trying to fix is messy hair and dated cardigan, hoping he didn't look like too much of a mess in front of Ginger and didn't look as self-consious than he actually was. Walking into the store, Spencer was greeted by the two young baristas who had a surprised look on their faces. Before Spencer could take a step froward, a small dog came bounding towards him, it's pink tongue sticking out and tail wagging uncontrollably. It came to a stop in front of Spencer, sitting down and looked up at him with warm chocolate eyes. After a few seconds of Spencer just staring at the little puppy, it started whining and appeared to want to stand up but decided to sit back down again. Deciding to pick it up, Spencer scooped it under his arm and began to wander around the store, looking for Ginger and along the way, the dog licked Spencer's face over and over again.

Spencer found Ginger shelving books on bugs in a little plaid skirt and her hair left down. Spencer felt heat rise up under his collar as he watched Ginger, with he back to him, bend down, skirt hitching up to put her stockings on display, to grab more books. Spencer felt as if he couldn't think straight, seeing her thighs hugged by stockings like that, especially when he saw the garter belt that held up said stockings.

As if the dog knew what dirty thoughts swam in Spencer's mind, it barked loudly, body wiggling in his arms causing Ginger to spin around, her hair flying around in a cartoonish manner. Even though she had it down and out, a small red velvet headband held it back from jumping in her face. After Spencer's date with her and being face-to-face with her, he noticed the faint freckles across her nose bridge but also took note that night of the small brown beauty marks sprinkled on her body, especially her back.

" _Spencer_! You didn't tell me you were back!" Dropping all the books in her hands, Ginger ran the short distance to Spencer and the dog only to engulf both of them in a hug. Spencer felt a blush form on his face from the way her body pressed all the way against his, small arms flung around his neck, her slope nose digging into his skin.

"I-I um, didn't know y-you wanted to know." Spencer stuttered out, letting his arm lightly wrap itself around her tiny waist.

Pulling back, she gave him a funny look, "Of course I wanted to know. I love seeing my favorite _Doctor_." As she said _doctor_ , her light brown eyes flicked down to look at his lips before looking back up into his eyes. But the way she said doctor made the heat from his collar move more down south in his body. As they stood there, Ginger let her hands tangle in his long, soft brown hair, her heart beating abnormally fast. She's been writing down in one of her many journals about how when she sees Spencer, everything is so much clearer to her.

"I see you've become acquainted to Chai!" Pulling away, Ginger grabbed the dog from under his arm, wrapping both of her arms under it, holding it close to her body smiling down at it.

"You named your dog after your favorite type of tea." When he said that, Ginger's eyes flicked up, filled with amusement and surprise.

"You remembered? I know you remember things but I didn't know you'd bother to remember anything about me. There's nothing interesting about me..."

Feeling his heart pang in his chest, Spencer reached out and placed his large hand upon her hip, pulling her closer to him and with a stern but gentle and calm voice se told her the truth. "I think you are very interesting...Any man would be lucky enough to spend the last three weeks getting to know you, honestly. I'm surprised that you wanted to have a date with me. I'm very lucky to be the one you want to get to know, Ginger." Ginger wanted to kiss him in that moment. She felt her knees get wobbly from the sad, smoldering look he was giving her and how gentle he was being with her.

"What do you mean? You're Dr. Spencer Reid. You have one of the most important minds in the world and you think _you're_ lucky? _I'm_ the lucky one." Petting Chai on her nose, Ginger's voice got really low, as if she didn't want Spencer to hear her. "You should have women throwing themselves at you left and right, yet here you are, in a tiny book store, talking to me and my dog."

"Well," Spencer cleared his throat, "maybe I don't want those women, maybe I want you..."

* * *

 ** _A/N: Can I get a comment or two please? Maybe I'll even update tomorrow! - maev_**


	4. Life Changes

_"Just when I think I have learned the way to live, life changes." - Hugh Prather_

* * *

Spencer decided it was time for the team to meet Ginger. It had been a month since they had started seeing each other and Spencer had done everything in his power to not talk about her in the work place and try to put space between his personal and work life. So far it had been successful.

He had thought of the idea wen Ginger was reading to him during their lunch breaks, they sat in a tiny, warm corner of the book shop, the window was built out into the seat where a bench was placed so they both could sit. Spencer had his back to the window, looking at her as her sock-clad legs draped across his lap and Chai's head rested on her thighs. He couldn't tear his eyes away from her, fingers lazily drawing invisible patterns and pictures on her legs as she read.

 _"The first week of August hangs at the very top of summer, the top of the live-long year, like the highest seat of a Ferris wheel when it pauses on its turning. The weeks that come before are only a climb from balmy spring, and those that follow a drop to the chill of autumn, but the first week of August is motionless, and hot. It is curiously silent, too, with blank white dawns and glaring noons, and sunsets smeared with too much color."_ Her voice made his knees weak and eyes heavy; we constantly wondered how it would be to hear that voice whisper sweet nothings into his ear as they lay tangled in his warm, crisp white sheets, her hair sprayed out against the pillows, hot skin against his.

"I..think you should meet the team..." Startled, Ginger slammed her new copy of " _Tuck_ _Everlasting_ ", startling Spencer and Chai both.

"Are you serious?" Spencer smiled at her confused face and nodded. Sighing, Ginger began to tie her hair up, something she only did when she was thinking and not in a stunning back-less dress.

"Should I wear something nice or casual?"

* * *

Walking into the office the next day, Spencer fiddled with the large button of his cardigan, thinking of the millions of ways he could word out what he wanted to say to his team.

 _"Hey do you guys want to meet this girl I've kept secret from you?"_  
 _"Hey do you guys want to meet this woman I've kept secret from you?"_  
 _"Do you guys want to go out and meet this new friend of mine?"_  
 _"What are your plans for this weekend? I think we should all go out!"_  
 _"Do you know I've been seeing someone? Of course you don't! Want to meet her?"_  
 _"I've been seeing a woman and I think it's time for you to meet her."_  
 _"I have kept this woman I've been seeing a secret form you guys just incase it turns out like last time and she has a crazy psychotic stalker who is going to eventually kill her."_

Spencer settled with a simple _"I've been seeing someone and I want you guys to meet her."_ But it was true, Spencer was scared. He was nervous that Ginger will realize she's too good for him, or that there is someone out there that will take her away from him or she'll simply leave.

"Hey Spence. Ready for the weekend?" JJ walked past spencer's desk, blonde hair following her.

laughing nervously Spencer shifted in his seat as everyone else piled in, "Um, yeah, JJ I am, but uh, I, uh wanted to know if uh, you guys wanted to meet t-this girl I've been seeing?"

Spencer expected a simple yes or no, he didn't not expect however, was Penelope screaming in his ear, JJ and Emily asking questions about her and Morgan, Rossi and Hotch all patting him on the back saying _"It's about time."_ "My man, Reid...It's been a year. I'm glad you are finally getting back out there, man. it'a bout time you moved on. it's for the best." Morgan said, which didn't sound as supportive to Spencer as it was probably intended to be.

"Thanks Morgan..." But before Morgan could say anything else, Rossi stepped in. "So, when do we get to meet the lucky lady?"

"Well, um, I was hoping for tonight. Ginger wanted to try this new Italian place about 15 minutes away." Spencer explained, fiddling with his hands.

Garcia smiled brightly, her red lipstick more noticeable, if possible, against her pearly white teeth. "Ginger...I like that name. I hope she's up to my standards, Boy Wonder." With a wink, she walked back to her bat cave in a flash of pinks and reds.

The day flew by in a flash, Spencer's mind rushing with thoughts of how the evening would go or how the team would react to Ginger. he was stuck on the thought of Ginger not liking his team when Morgan walked up to his desk and asked him if they had slept together yet. Spencer didn't bother to answer, instead he babbled about sexual hormones and gathered his things to leave.

"I'll meet you all at the restaurant. Wear something nice." With that being said, Spencer left his dangerous job and wait as the clock ticked away, waiting for his two worlds to meet.

* * *

Getting ready, Spencer pulled on an off white button down shirt with a grey silk tie, his favorite deep red colored sweater vest over that and a grey wool suit jacket atop of that. His slacks were black and shoes were his usual black converse. He and Ginger agreed to meet at the restaurant, giving him some time alone which, at the time, he thought was a good idea but now he was regretting it; he felt as if right about how if she was with him, she would be telling him to turn around and take her home back to Chai, that she didn't want to meet his team and call their whole relationship off.

At the restaurant, Spencer noticed that he was the second to last one there. Everyone but Ginger sat at a large round table, catting away, wine glasses in front of them, ready to be filled. He took note that Morgan wore a black ensemble; black button up with the first four buttons undone, ungracefully tucked into his black slacks and a black blazer thrown on his large shoulders. JJ looked stunning in a simple blue blouse tucked in neatly to black dress pants with heels to match. JJ was holding hands with Will who was dressed in a cleaner version of Morgan's outfit, but with a loose white tie to go with. Both Hotch and Rossi sat in nice suits Reid was used to seeing them in, a handkerchief peaking out of Rossi's breast pocket. Emily sat with a sleek ponytail and a forum fitting black dress while Penelope was clad in a pink dress with a lighter pink cardigan thrown atop, her blonde hair streaked with reds and colorful hair accessories.

"Reid! Where is this Miss Ginger?" Penelope was the only one with two empty seats next to her, so Reid assumed that's where the young couple would be seated. Sitting down, Reid told her he didn't know, until Morgan let out an obnoxious wolf whistle.

"Would you look at _that_." In the doorway of the restaurant stood Ginger; she had on a pink silk top that had a neckline that was swooping dangerously low, you could see that valley between her breasts from where Reid was sitting with regular denim pants on that made her short legs appear longer and thighs look thicker, which Spencer didn't mind and simple heels the same color of her top. In her hand was a small clutch with pearls adorning it to match the pearl necklace she wore. Her hair was up in a tight pony-tail, no lipstick and simple makeup yet again, and Reid could only imagine seeing her whole back in that top. As if she felt all of their eyes on her, she smiled seeing Reid in the corner of the place. Waving happily, she made her way to the table, grinning ear to ear.

"Wait..." Morgan started to say something, with amazement shining though his eyes. " _That's_ Ginger?" He looked between Reid's blushing face and Ginger's bright smile. Morgan still couldn't get it through his brain as Ginger waltzed up to the group and leaned down to give a long kiss on Reid mouth.

"Hi, Spence." Sitting down, her smile never left her face and her eyes never left Spencer's. "It's great to see you again."

I-It's great to see you, too. I-I um would like you to meet everyone..." Turning to face his friends, Reid cleared his throat. "This is JJ and Will, Derek Morgan, Aaron Hotchner, you hear me refer to him as Hotch, Emily Prentiss, Penelope Gracia and David Rossi..."


	5. Felt with the Heart

_**A/N: Before I begin, I would like to give a big thanks to all that have commented, especially gossamermouse101 because they and 'guest' have commented 2-3 times already which is amazing! Thank you!**_

* * *

 _Hellen Keller once said, "The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched - they must be felt with the heart."_

* * *

Spencer was amazed about how well everything was going. The team loved Ginger and Ginger loved them. They were particularly impressed with how smart, yet modest she was, knew how to speak, read and write 3 _different_ languages besides English. Even though Spencer knew how well the team got a long with her, he couldn't peel his eyes off of her back and the skin that was exposed of her chest. Because the top she wore was basically just a rectangle of fabric held by strings, the neckline plunged low enough for Spencer and anyone else that was looking, to see that valley between her breasts. Spencer felt the need to put his jacket over her body, not because he was ashamed or didn't think she was beautiful, quote the opposite actually, he was _jealous_. He didn't want other people looking at Ginger with such _desire_ , like how Morgan did when she first walked in.

Morgan actually wasn't even talking to Ginger, Spencer noticed and Ginger wasn't talking to him. It was almost like Ginger knew what Morgan had said when he first saw her and Spencer himself felt as if the wheels in Morgan's head were spinning on and on about how a guy like _Spencer_ got woman like _Ginger_. But Spencer didn't want to think about that, he wanted to think about how lucky he was to have her on his arm. She was hands down the sexiest woman in the room, her warm brown skin, long curly hair, freckled skin and full pink lips that were so inviting...

Clearing his throat and returning back to reality, Spencer tried to follow the on going conversation; they were talking about Ginger's love for Shakespeare.

"You know, I could never understand sonnet 116..." Garcia trailed off, taking a long sip of wine, her ruby red lips leaving color on the rim.

Sighing happily Ginger, leaned her cheek against her hand, "Oh, that one is my favorite. My mother used to read it to me all the time, it was even her wedding speech the first time my parents got married and when they renewed their vows."

Smiling at Ginger's dazed off look, Spencer spoke up, "Well actually, Garcia, **_Sonnet_ _116_** is about love in its most ideal form. Shakespeare praises the glories of lovers who have come to each other freely, and enter into a relationship based on trust and understanding. The first four lines reveal the poet's pleasure in love that is constant and strong, and will **not** _'alter when it alteration finds._ ' The following lines proclaim that true love is indeed an _'ever-fix'd mark_ ' which will survive any crisis. In lines 7-8, the poet claims that we may be able to measure love to some degree, but this does not mean we fully understand it. Love's actual worth cannot be known – it remains a mystery. The remaining lines of the third quatrain (9-12), reaffirm the perfect nature of love that is unshakeable throughout time and remains so _'ev'n to the edge of doom_ ', or death.

In the final couplet, the poet declares that, if he is mistaken about the constant, unmovable nature of perfect love, then he must take back all his writings on love, truth, and faith. Moreover, he adds that, if he has in fact judged love inappropriately, no man has ever really loved, in the ideal sense that Shakespeare details of Sonnet 116 are best described by Tucker Brooke in his acclaimed edition of Shakespeare's poems:

 _'[In Sonnet 116] the chief pause in sense is after the twelfth line. Seventy-five per cent of the words are monosyllables; only three contain more syllables than two; none belong in any degree to the vocabulary of 'poetic' diction. There is nothing recondite, exotic, or metaphysical in the thought. There are three run-on lines, one pair of double-endings. There is nothing to remark about the rhyming except the happy blending of open and closed vowels, and of liquids, nasals, and stops; nothing to say about the harmony except to point out how the fluttering accents in the quatrains give place in the couplet to the emphatic march of the almost unrelieved iambic feet. In short, the poet has employed one hundred and ten of the simplest words in the language and the two simplest rhyme-schemes to produce a poem which has about it no strangeness whatever except the strangeness of perfection. (Brooke, p. 234)'_ Most people actually make the mistake of thinking this is an anti-love poem, like his play _The Taming of the Shrew._ "

As he spoke, Spencer was wringing his wrists and getting overly excited at some parts of his explanation, but like always, the team started to ignore him when he first started rambling off, but Ginger wasn't like them. She enjoyed hearing Spencer's voice and loved hearing everything that was buried in his beautiful mind. As Spencer trailed off, he caught Ginger looking at him with something in her eyes; _love_.

"You never cease to amaze me, _Doctor_..." Under the table, her right hand found his thigh and as she stared at his flushed face, she trailed her hand lightly up and down his leg, squeezing his upper thigh, making him jump and shift uncomfortably from the tightness growing in his slacks. It wasn't just her hand that got him hot below the collar, but her voice, just her voice in itself was hot and the combination of her calling him doctor and the way she was dressed made him want to take her home...

* * *

 ** _Yes it is short, but I wanted to give you guys a little something ;~) (there will be some mega fluff and smut for you guys soon) ps, we have 37 readers! Can you believe it? Only 5 chapters in and 37 of you are sticking with me?! Y'all are the best._**

 ** _hugs and kisses -_**

 ** _m.b.c._**


	6. Fear Is Fear

_**Sorry for being so lazy with updates! But I am on a 10 day fall break because AZ feels bad for us and I will try to bust out a few chapters! This one might be a bit longer because I have to leave my house early today because Bernie Sanders is coming today (it's the 9th as I write this)! How exciting! And tomorrow, the 10th is Pride for my town so I'll be doin my queer thing with all the queers in town so.**_

 _ **On another note, I've started a new tumblr, xombc, which will be my writing blog so if you guys want one-shots of a regular story, fluff or even a lil dirty one, message me on there and I'll give you a one-shot! I already have one up, so please to check it out!**_

* * *

 _"_ _The only thing we have to fear is fear itself."  
_

 _Franklin D. Roosevelt_

* * *

Walking to work, Spencer Reid was in a bad mood. His mind was stuck in what happened in his apartment two nights ago.

 _...It was hot in Spencer's apartment, hotter than usual and the air conditioner was broken. It was a Saturday night and Ginger was over, watching movies for their weekly movie night that they usually had if Spencer wasn't on a case. Ginger had been shocked that Spencer had yet to see A Clockwork Orange and she managed to convince him to watch it with her. Even after she walked him through the whole movie, he was still confused. Laughing at all of his silly questions, Ginger suggested they started to head to bed, which Spencer gladly agreed to. Because of how hot it was, Ginger's thin, loose grey shirt and loose running shorts were sticking to her sweaty body. Usually Spencer would have been disgusted, but Spencer found her even more beautiful with her wisps of hair that fell out of her bun stuck to her face. Smiling at her, Spencer ushered her to his en suit bathroom, letting her take the first shower._

 _Ginger knew that Spencer wasn't home much, but she marveled at his impeccably clean bathroom and glass shower doors and wood cabinet doors. Even the countertop was resined rose-wood. Pulling out her various bottles and her body soap before turing on the shower and stripping her clothes off to step inside. Ginger let the hot water steam up the mirrors and door, falling down her body. As she performed her shower ritual, washing her hair, detangling her hair and braiding it to keep it together, washing her body, her mind wandered to the past few days between her and Spencer. Three weeks after meeting his team, on the dot, things between Ginger and Spencer got a little hotter. Their seemingly innocent kisses turned in to deep, steamy kisses in the middle of a movie theater, bodies flush against each other at their doorsteps saying goodbye._

 _Just a week prior Ginger found herself making out with him on his couch, his back pressed against the back of the couch, Ginger straddling him. Spencer was shocked at how intimate Ginger wanted to be with him, but he didn't mind. he even let his hands slip up behind her thighs, gripping them tightly, bringing her closer to him. Before they could get any closer, Spencer pulled away, his phone ringing uncontrollably._

 _Ginger was sexually frustrated. She wanted Spencer to touch her. Yes, she'd had partners in the past, all of whom she had normal sex lives with. It felt like she had been involuntarily celibate for years when it really was just 18 months but she also respected Spencer's lack of desire to be intimate; she just was getting tiered of pleasing herself..._

Sitting in his desk, Reid pulled off his coat and set it aside, his mind still on replay. He didn't notice Garcia, JJ or Emily standing five feet away from him hatting about shoes and Sergio, or even Kevin poking around Garcia just to be next to her. he certainly didn't notice the coffee he still held in his hands, untouched, had ran cold by then. He couldn't stop hitting reply on that stupid memory.

 _...Sighing, Ginger turned off the water and stepped out, realizing she forgot her clothes and wrapped a fluffy white towel around her body. Stepping out, she found Spencer flipping though a book, pajamas and robe folded neatly on his bed. Looking up, his face immediately turned bright red as he jumped out of the chair, rushing to grab his things and trying to run around you, apologizing and trying to avoid looking at your body and slammed the door behind him. Feeling the heat of the room hit her again and after seeing Spencer flustered like that, she felt a little racy. Instead of her full clad of her night time clothes, Ginger settled on a thin, silk tank top and her red lacy underwear. She placed her things back into her bag and laid on Spencer's soft bed, cuddling up to the cool sheets, breathing in Spencer's sent she wanted to live in._

 _Ginger listened to the sound of running water as Spencer silently panicked in the shower. He wasn't in any kind of rush to get back to Ginger. Their relationship was beginning to scare him; they had been dating nearly four months and he began to notice Ginger's behavior, she was more touchy than before, she was getting comfortable, as was he. They had countless sleepovers over the past weeks, something Spencer never knew he'd find himself doing. But Spencer, too, wanted to become intimate with her but he didn't know how to tell her without completely embarrassing himself. He was a virgin and he knew for a fact Ginger was not._

 _Sucking up what was left of his pride, Spencer got out of the shower and proceeded to dress, putting his glasses on his nose. Looking at his refection in the mirror, he told himself he can go out and lay in the same bed as his girlfriend, like normal adults. Taking a deep breath, Spencer walked out of the room and was greeted by the longest pair of legs he's ever seen. Ginger's back was to him, her top nearly transparent, he could see the freckles on her back from where he stood. he also noticed that her tiny underwear showed off more of her ass than it covered, which got him hot under the collar._

 _Joining her on the bed, Spencer cleared his throat, catching her attention. She turned around, smiling up at him, one arm draped on her stomach._

 _"Hey." Sitting up, Ginger draped her body against Spencer's, pulling him into a kiss._

 _"Hi." He said back, pulling her closer to his body, all of his insecurities washed away with one little kiss. He was still amazed that she could do that to him. It wasn't long before his mind was racing with lovely thgoughts of her and how utterly perfect she was for him. With that, came his own self-consiousness. Pushing her away, Spencer sighed._

 _"W-what was that for?" she asked, hurt laced in her words, causing Spencer's stomach to clench. "Spencer? Are you going to answer me?"_

 _"Why are you with me? Huh, is it because you pity me?" he didn't dare look at her, he could feel the daggers she shot at him for asking such a stupid question in the first place but he didn't care. "Did you just think it would be fun and games to date Dr. Spencer Reid? Lead him on?"_

 _"I don't know what the fuck happened to you, but no. I am not pity dating you, I don't think this relationship is a joke. I am with you because I think you are an amazing person and I care about you. One might even say I love you."_

 _Scoffing, Spencer rubbed his face replying, "Yeah, you care for me. Sure you do. Why don't you go date some guy like Morgan, hell! Why don't you date **Morgan**! I'm sure a big buff, experienced guy like him would go well with you Ginger." He honestly didn't understand where any of this was coming from. he didn't want the night to end like this, in their first fight. He didn't even want her to hear any of this. _

_"I do not need this shit, Spencer. I thought everything was good between us. We were having fun, good laughs, nice dates. But this? I don't need this, especially from you. You're the last person I'd expect to do this. Call me when I have my Spencer back, don't bother stopping by the shop unless you're you." Pulling on her clothes she wore during the day, not bothering to put a bra on or take the top off, Ginger threw on her loose jeans and little red flats with her button down; she was rushing to get her clothes on and things collected he hadn't noticed the time nor that the buttons were not evenly buttoned._

 _"Wait, you can't go home at this time of night!"_

 _"I can, and I am. I won't stay here to get a lesson on what my intentions are with you." At this point, the dam had broken. Tears were freely swimming down her rosy cheeks, her hands were shaking and her brain was frazzled. Ginger could feel her heart breaking at Spencer's words. Instead of staying and talking, Ginger ran out of the apartment and down the stairs out into the nice Virginia night._

 _It wasn't too dark outside with all the street lamps, but she wasn't worried about that. She wasn't even worried about the person who was following behind her._


	7. I Loved Alone

_"From childhood's hour I have not been. As others were, I have not seen. As others saw, I could not awaken. My heart to joy at the same tone. And all I loved, I loved alone."_

 _― Edgar Allan Poe_

* * *

"Okay, my lovelies, our next case is local. In the past three months, three women have been found dead in Richmond, Virginia. All women were found sexually mutilated, multipule cuts and burns on their bodies and all were suffocated before thrown into the woods. The spooky thing is, all women look almost exactly alike; all four are petite black women, with brown eyes, long curly hair and freckles." Garcia said the last part almost hesitantly, causing Spencer to look up and stare at the pictures of the women on the board. They all looked like Ginger. _His_ Ginger.

"All have been reported missing three days before been reported missing, the last time they've been were in public places, jobs, coffee shops or the library. Our first vic is Jenna Lewis, a 19 year old college student. She was last seen by her roommate at the library, her major is English." Everyone couldn't help but stare at Reid, knowing that Ginger took many english courses at her time in school.

"Our second, is Shauna Kennedy, 23, and was taken at her job, a small cafe in the center of Richmond. Her co-workers say she was closing for the night but never showed up for work the next day and lastly we have Rebecka Johnson, 25. She works in...a book store." Rebecka was the one who resembled Ginger the most. They were the same age and worked in book stores. Spencer's throat was closing up and he began to feel dizzy. He tried to listen to the case, pushing away his thoughts of where Ginger was. He knew she was probably at work, laughing with her co-workers, Sunny and Cher, petting Chai or thumbing through an old favorite.

"What was the sexual abuse they endured, Garcia?" someone asked, Reid wasn't sure. Hotch, maybe Morgan.

Groaning, Garcia clicked her little remote, pulling up a new picture, "All of their, uh, lady parts have been severely burned. And there was evidence of rape on the report...Who ever is doing this has some mega, mega probs!"

Standing up, Hotch gathered his files and look at everyone, "Let's go everyone. JJ, Emily, you two go to the first victim's house and then talk to the family, Rossi and I will take the second, I want Morgan and Reid to take Rebecka's house, talk to her co-workers." Nodding, everyone teamed up and went on their ways, getting addresses and names from Garcia along the way.

In the car, Spencer nervously called Ginger's cell phone, getting a voicemail automatically. "H-hey Gin, I um, I have a-a case right now b-but I think I'll be home s-soon. I think we should talk...I...I lo-I'll talk to you soon." Throwing his phone in his bag, Reid ran his hair though is hair, pulling at it feeling extremely frustrated.

"Hey, Pretty Boy, what's up?"

Snaking his head, Spencer sighed, watching the trees whirl by. "Ginger and I got into a fight. I said stupid things, that she is pity dating me..."

"What? Spencer. That is the dumbest thing you could do to that girl next to dump her."

"I know, I know! I don't know what I was thinking. One moment we were kissing and she was happy, but I ruined it...things were getting um, you know, uh..."

"Hot? My man, just tell her you're not ready but at the same time, are you sure you don't know? Do you think you are scared to progress in this relationship because of Maeve?"

Looking at him now, Spencer was confused, "What? That's stupid..."

"Is it? I think you are scared of moving forward with Ginger because you miss Maeve and you've never done the things with Maeve that you've done with Ginger. You and Gin hold hands, go on dinner dates, sleep over at each other's houses, you visit her at work constantly. And, her dog loves you. And Ginger loves you. I get it, you got scared when Ginger wanted to take the first step and have sex. "

"How do you know that...that she loves me..."

"Because, Boy Genius, when we met her, even though it was fresh in your relationship, the way she looked at you...if I had a woman look at me like that, I'd be married by now. Look, Ginger is special and you should apologize to her when we get home and make sure to kiss her hard okay?"

Smiling, Spencer nodded, saying okay, letting the thought of Ginger loving him sink in.

* * *

At the station, Spencer had begun to work on the geographical profile, circling the points where the women were abducted and found when the Sheriff walked in.

"Hey, guys, we have another woman missing." He said, gathering them into a conference room where Garcia stood, crying.

"Baby girl..." Morgan started but Garcia rushed closer to Spencer, a stream of words pouring out of her mouth.

"Garcia..."

"Our next...victim is...25 year old Ginger Sh-" Saying her name made Garcia's voice crack, her hands wiping away tears, "S-Shelly Fredrikson." Garcia couldn't stop crying as she pit the picture of a smiling Ginger on the monitor, causing Spencer's worst fear come to life. He stumbled into a seat, peering over the photo of Ginger. "One of her co-workers, S-Sunny, called it in this morning after she missed work yesterday...t-there's um, there's video footage from an ATM of her getting...abducted."

Turning on the video, the whole team and Richmond P.D. all watched Spencer's girlfriend be taken. It was the night she left his apartment after their fight, she was digging through her wallet, trying to find her debit card, probably when suddenly a man appeared behind her. He stood behind her for three minutes and five seconds and watched her take money from the ATM, crying in the process. Spencer's heart dropped when she turned around, clutching her wallet tight as she backed all the way up to the ATM. Garcia was crying as she witnessed the unsub take Ginger by her hair and threw her on the ground, kicking her repetitively before he dragged her up by her hair again, her face twisted in pain. he had wrapped his arm around her midsection, dragging her off camera, her legs kicking, trying to get free.

"This...was a day and one night ago..."

"Meaning we have two days to find Ginger before she'd dead. Let's find out who did this." Hotch stood up, the same strong expression he always wore during a case, but there was something else there, something that was there when Haley was killed and Maeve. Hotch didn't want to see Reid go though loving another important person in his life again. He didn't deserve all of the sadness and sorrow, he wanted to see the young doctor happy and he knew Ginger made him happy beyond words.

* * *

 _ **Okay my lovelies, I have TWO NEW chapters ready to be published BUT I need reviews from you guys. SO if I get 2+ reviews, I'll post my chapters for you guys.**_


	8. For People Falling In Love

_**I want to give a big thank you to grossamermouse101, WarriorHime53 and Nonitk for your reviews! This one is for you guys!**_

* * *

 _"Gravitation is not responsible for people falling in love."_

 _Albert Einstein_

* * *

"First step, Garcia what did you find out with Ginger's background?"

Standing at the front of the room, she sighed, "For the record I do not feel okay doing this to Ginger, like at all! But what caught my eye is her health, when Ginger was 20 she came into her local hospital with a large bruise on her face, a busted lip and her eye was swollen shut and for three years she would pop in and out of the hospital, no specific time-line for when she'd go. It fluctuated from the summer to Christmas, back to the fall, a few times on her birthdays...Now, all the reports say that she either had severe bruising to the face, ribs, legs or she'd come in with a broken collar-bone, broken leg and the last hospital report she came in with a punctured lung. Also, with all of these injuries, the reports show her having malnutrition...After that, her hospital records show her to be in Virginia."

Garcia clicked through photos of Ginger, her face unrecognizable in some, in others, her eyes were beyond dead. "I talked to her therapists and they said that she wouldn't tell them who was doing all that damage to her, but she told them her parents were just as worried. Speaking of them, Cosima and Chrispin Fredrikson live right here in Virginia, Winchester to be exact and they are on their way over here now. But, I looked at their credit cards, debit cards, flight records, everything that has their name on it; turns out they took good care of Ginger when she was a child, took her across the world, took her to fancy restaurants and museums. As Reid knows, Chrispen is an entomologist, rewarded many times, wrote seven award winning books and married Cosima when they were only 21. Cosima sculpts, her work was displayed in art galleries all around the world, hence the family traveling a lot. There's nothing bad about this family. They loved each other."

"What about Ginger's schooling? Is there any connection to the other victims?"

"Well, Ginger went to Boston right out of high school, she graduated at 15 because she was homeschooled, then attended until she was 19, got a bachelor's in 16th century lit. After that she went to Sarah Lawrence for the next four years, she graduated with a BA in English and MFA in Fine Arts, she paints. The first vicim went to University of Richmond, Shauna went to VCU and Rebecka went to Mary Baldwin."

"Okay, so Rebecka and Ginger both went to independant women's colleges, and Rebecka is the one who looks the most like her, so I'm going to guess out unsub is actually after Ginger...she's not just a victim." Emily said, her thinking face on. "What of this is an ex boyfriend? Why would he target other women, why not just go straight for his object?"

"Maybe he was practicing," Morgan said. "he was probably trying to find her in the process, too."

"When Mr. and Mrs. Fredrikson come in, I want JJ, Reid & Emily to talk to them about any of Ginger's boyfriends. Rossi, Morgan, I want you to go to Ginger's apartment and look through everything." When Hotch gave Rossi and Morgan their orders, Reid cringed, thinking of all the personal things they'd see of Ginger's. They'll even see some of Spencer's clothes thrown across the floors. This was all too much. "Reid, if you want to sit this one out..."

"No, Hotch, I want to find her. I need to..."

* * *

As Mr. and Mrs. Fredrikson walked in, Spencer immediately though of how much Ginger looked like her mother. They had the same big eyes and dark skin but he noticed she got her freckles from her dad, who had tears running down his face. Spencer watched them from a conference room talk to one of the deputies then be escorted to the room he currently stood in with JJ.

"Jeez, Mrs. Fredrikson doesn't look a day over 40..." Spencer heard JJ whisper under her breath, the couple walking in, staring right at him. Cosima was wearing a plain black dress that fell down to the floor, a small train behind her and a large blood red scarf with gold beads and detailing on it, draped over her head, covering the drown of her head. Instead of holding hands, Cosima's right arm was hooked in Chrispin's left who was wearing a fitted black button up tucked into a pair of black slacks. He had on a dense grey cardigan, a pin of a Death Head's Moth pinned above his heart.

"You're Dr. Spencer Reid..." Cosima said, unraveling her arm from her husband's. "I recognize you...Ginger sent us a photo of you one day, said you were the love of her life. She could talk about you for hours, sometimes she'd go on and on about how smart you were, she was amazed about how much one person could actually know." She was standing right in front of Spencer now. "She said she thought your hair was too long, but she liked it. She didn't have much taste for men with short hair."

Walking up to the three other people in the room JJ offered Cosima her hand. "Mrs. Fredrikson, we'd like you ask you a few questions, please, if you're okay with that." Nodding, Cosima and Chrispin followed JJ to sit down.

"So, what can you tell us about Ginger?"

Smiling sadly, Cosima pulled out a picture of Ginger, with Chai, Spencer noticed. "She loved every thing and everyone. She was our first and only, you know. She loved going to Italy in the summers, we'd take her to the museums and give her a small sketch book and she's come back with pages after pages of drawings. Even as a teenager, she loved spending time with us, everyone said she skipped her parent hating phase," Cosima laughed, almost sounding forced but continued. "but after high school, when she went to Sarah Lawrence...everything was different."

Clearing her throat and leaning in JJ asked, "What do you mean, different?"

"She started dating a boy named Davis. Ghram Davis. At first he was picture perfect, held doors open for her, pulled out her chair during dinners, took her up to his parent's cabin down in Virginia Beach for long weekends. But then...in the beginning of the second year of their relationship he began to become unhappy. He'd also expect way too much of her. She held two jobs and went to school yet he'd want her home at 5 to make him dinner. Ginger didn't want to tell us she was being hit, but a mother knows. One day she even came over to spend the night, her whole left side of her body and face were black and blue; Ginger brushed it off and said she fell on the marble steps at Sebastian's parents' house."

"Can you tell us anything you remember about Ghram, Mrs. Fredrikson?"

"He was spoiled. Not in the way Ginger was, oh no, his parents stuffed his pockets to keep him quiet. He was in a frat house, drank all the time, barely attended classes. I remember Ginger telling me that he's always at the gym, he was very strong. He would verbally hurt her, too, you know. Tell her she was...u-ugly and fat. That no one loved her..."

Leaning in, JJ took Cosima's hand, rubbing circles on her hand soothingly, "Did Ginger have an eating disorder?" Cosima, nodded, bursting into tears, Chrispin following, pulling out a handkerchief out of his pocket, wiping his eyes.

"She nearly starved herself to death!" At this point, Cosima and Chrispin were hysterical.

"I know this is hard, Mr. and Mrs. Fredrikson, but can you think of any reason why Ghram would take or hurt Ginger further?"

Nodding, Chrispin straightened up, "After they broke up, Ghram stalked Ginger for three months, sending her flowers then death threats then pictures of her in places, in her home, in our home! We got a restraining order against him, then it stopped. His parents come from money and tried to convince us to drop it, but we didn't. They said they'd control their child for once."

"Can you remember The Davis' address by chance? Or their names?"

"Yes, Calvin and Claudia. That's why we hit it off with them when the kids started dating, we joked that we were destined to be friends." Chrispin said, giving a weak laugh as he wrote down the Davis' home address and phone numbers. "Please, get my Ginger back. She's the only child we have. She's our everything."

* * *

JJ and Emily offered to go to The Davis' in the jet and let Reid stay with the Fredrikson's. He lead them into a secluded room with a couch and coffee pot, letting them wait there for any news.

"Come, sit, please." Cosima begged Spencer, scooting away from her husband, letting Spencer Reid sit between the couple. As he did, Cosima reached into her large purse and pulled out a large bundle of postcards and letters addressed to her and her husband from Ginger. "She's mentioned you in all of her letters and cards since she met you. She told me that you write to your mother everyday, is that right?"

Clearing his throat, he nodded, "Yes, she lived back in my home town, las Vegas, and I don't get to see her very often due to my job."

"That's very sweet of you. No matter the reason you do it." It was like they knew Spencer had locked Diana in a mental institution. "You know, Ginger talked about how scared she was about how much she loved you, loved to be around you. She's also mentioned that Chai loves you, which is rare, Chai is _very_ protective of Gingi." She laughed, searching through the stack of letters, putting some on the coffee table in front of them, images in the post cards reminded him of Ginger, which was funny considering they were sent from her. "Here, read this."

Spencer took the envelope softly, unfolding the paper inside. In Ginger's perfect 16th century cursive he read:

 _"Mom & Dad,_

 _I was working last week, reading a book, **The Canterbury Tales** again, and the weather was nice, tea was hot and sweet and then suddenly, I met that person that made me forget about yesterday and dream about tomorrow; __Dr. Spencer Reid. Do you remember him? I had convinced you to let me see him guest lecture over at Boston University, remember? He is even more brilliant than he was when he spoke. He's taller up close, too. Being face to face with him was like being close to an angel, I wish you could see his face, he's beautiful; he was great taste in books._

 _He took me on a date tonight; Chinese, my favorite. He could talk for hours and it was quite embarrassing, I caught myself staring at him while he was talking about ancient China, but I couldn't help myself. Do you remember when you said to fine someone that makes the world stop? I think I found that person. I could be in a room filled with art and I'd still look at Spencer._

 _He's so much better than Ghram, he's smarter tan him, too. He's beyond anything I can ever imagine. He's the man of my dreams, mom. I want you to meet him, but it's been one date and I don't want him to run away. But he does know who Dad is, he's the guy who bought a Birdwing Goliath two winters ago._

 _I have to cut this letter short but I'll leave you with this:_

A garden saw I, full of blossomy boughs

Upon a river, in a green mead,

There as sweetness evermore enough is,

With flowers white, blue, yellow, and red,

And cold well-streams, nothing dead,

That swimming full of small fishes light,

With fins red and scales silver bright.

 _All my love,_

 _Ginger"_

Spencer wiped away tears that had gathered in his eyes and looked up at Ginger's parents, "I love her, too."

Nodding, Cosima grasped his hands as Chrispin patted his back, "We know."


	9. Love Is A Reciprocal Torture

_Marcel Proust said "Love is a reciprocal torture."_

* * *

JJ and Emily made it to the Davis' house in record time. They were welcomed into the home without questioned, even offered something to drink. Claudia was truly a Southern bell.

"I'm actually from Louisiana, we came up here for Ghram's schooling. I thought that his education was more important than the comfort of my home town." Claudia smiled, resting on the arm of the chair her husband sat, her big blonde hair and pearly white smile were overpowering. The women sat there, smiling at Claudia trying to be polite. "I went to Our Lady of Holy Cross, before it was co-ed of course. Then I went on and majored in interior design, hence our beautiful home."

Calvin decided to speak up after Claudia was done showing off, "So, Agents Jearau and Prentiss, what can we do for you today?"

"Well, Mr. and Mrs. Davis," Emily started, her gaze on a picture of Ginger on the fire place for a quick second, "we are here to ask you about your son. His ex-girlfriend, Ginger, is missing."

Upon hearing that Ginger was missing, Claudia dropped her glass, letting out a gasp. " _Ginger_? Are you sure? No, no. That isn't true, is it?"

"We are, Mrs. Davis. Can you tell me about Ginger?"

Sighing and walking away from her husband to sit on the snow white couch, she put a hand over her forehead. "Ginger was an angel. She tried to make Ghram so happy, but he was so stubborn. She came over for holidays, vacations, weekends, her parents, too. She was like a light in Ghram's life, tried to get him to try new things, put himself out there in a better way, but he has a temper. he always got upset if he didn't get what he wanted. We tried, _I_ tried, to get him to stop hurting her...but he got worse."

"You knew she was being hit by your son?"

Claudia nodded her eyes brimming with tears. "He forced me to drive her to the hospitals every time he hurt her in my house. One time, he didn't let me take her. He was tried to drown her in the lake when we were on vacation for our 4th of July weekend. he held her underwater for a minute, I can't get the image of her thrashing under the water out of my mind..." Looking over to Calvin, he was silently crying, holding his glass of brandy over his forehead.

"Claudia, Calvin, do you know where Ghram would take Ginger?"

"We have property, outside of Richmond. It technically belongs to us, but we let Ghram go there when he feels overwhelmed. He has privacy. Please, if he has Ginger, bring her home to Cosima and Chrispin, please. She's a good girl." Emily texted the team the address, Hotch telling her all units will meet them them there.

* * *

"Hotch, we have an address of where Ghram might be with Ginger. But something is odd, it feels like Claudia and Calvin love Ginger more than they do Ghram. Claudia even says she drove Ginger to the hospital herself on many occasions." Emily said into the video camera as she and JJ waited for the jet to take off.

"Well, that would be because Claudia has a restraining order against her son, mon amie." Garcia popped up as a third party, typing away as she talked. "When Ghram was 15, he killed their puppy and took a knife to his mom's throat, telling her, and I quote "If you do that again, I'll gut you like a fish" with the puppy blood all over him, still."

"What did he mean by that?"

"She bought him the wrong kind of ski boat."

* * *

In Richmond, Ginger was crying. "Baby, don't cry. It's okay, we're together again!" Ghram was tall. Built like Morgan he easily overpowered Ginger. He didn't tie her up, but all doors and windows were locked by key.

Ginger was standing in the bathroom, tears running done her cheeks without a sound. She had been in this bathroom before, white marble floors and a large claw foot bath tub made of porcelain all the way from Europe. There was a crystal chandler hanging above her head, the lights making the room turn gold. Ghram wanted her to take a bath, seeing how anxious and shaky she was. Ginger had a big, white fluffy towel wrapped around her body, her hands clutching it so tight her knuckles began to turn white. Ghram was forcing her to take a shower, he somehow had old clothes of hers folded up in the bedroom. He said that she smelled like Spencer, which enraged him, even though it had been roughly two days since she had last seen Spencer and in those two days she was stuck with Ghram, she had taken two showers.

Ghram was kneeling by the bathtub, his hand under the water, testing the temperature. After he was satisfied, he put the stopper in, letting the tub fill and began to pour bubble bath gel into the water. _Only the best for my lady_ , he had said when he showed her the pink, glittery bottle. He thought after he abducted and raped her a fucking bubble bath would make her fall in love with him again. Ginger wanted to scream and shout, tell him to fuck off and leave her alone, but she didn't want to die.

After the bath was filled up, Ghram stood up and smiled at her. Tugging at the towel, Ghram tried his best to stay calm and be nice to her, he finally got her back, he didn't want to mess up his chances this time around. After a bit of trying and tugging, he finally got Ginger down to nothing, he pulled he into the tub, letting her body be covered up by the bubbles, but he didn't mind. Ghram almost didn't notice that Ginger was near sobbing; her body was shaking violently but he held in the tears, trying to stay silent.

Over the past two days, Ghram was the only one who talked; the talked about how they first met, their anniversaries together, when he told her he was in love with her for the first time, the time they first had sex, their first time having sex in the car, he even talked about the first time he hit her.

"I only hit you Ging, was because you were flirting with that guy, Troy, wasn't it? No, no, no, it was Thomas. How could I forget? How silly of me! Anyways, I only did that to show you how I am your one and only, you can't go around flirting and talking with other guys like that when you're with me, which will be forever now that you are here with me again. Speaking of now, i think I need to pay your good Doctor Reid a nice visit, show him who's boss. Don't you think that would be nice? A little visit to keep him away. You know, we should get married in this house, my parents did when they were our age; it will be big and white, white roses everywhere. How do you like the white theme? We'll have white food too; chicken Alfredo, white wines, white cake, vanilla ice cream, whipped cream everywhere! Remember how much fun we would have with whipped cream?"

While Ghram talked a million miles a minute, he didn't notice Ginger string at the people who had quietly moved into the bathroom with them. They were mostly familiar faces to her, JJ, Emily, Morgan, Rossi, Hotch and her Spencer. They all had their guns pointed at Ghram's head, serious look son their faces.

"Ghram Davis, FBI. Don't move. I need you to get up and step away from Ginger, with your hands on your head." Morgan's loud voice boomed. Now with an angry face, Ghram looked at Ginger, a silent threat being exchanged. He was going to get her one way or another.

Morgan managed to get a very angry and thrashing Ghram into handcuffs so he could drag him out of the room. Reid ordered everyone out of the room so he could get Ginger out of the tub and into the towel that lay on the floor, so some of her modestly and pride could be restored. As he wrapped her in the towns and in his arms, she began to sob hysterically, her whole body shaking. Reid couldn't remember the exact moment when her legs gave out, he just remembered he was there to catch her.

* * *

 _ **A/N: OKAY one more chapter and if you guys want the next one, there must be 3+ comments, you have to tell me what kind of ending you want AND you have to let me know if you want a sequel!**_

 _ **xo m.b.c.**_


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